


Shield

by chquine



Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Love Confessions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-06-29
Packaged: 2019-05-30 06:43:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15091241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chquine/pseuds/chquine
Summary: He is the only one known to have a defensive type of Mana Burst and he was your Shielder.





	Shield

**Author's Note:**

> I do not profit from this work of fiction. Anything recognizable aside from the fanfiction itself is not mine. The views and opinions expressed in this does not necessarily mirror that of the writer.
> 
> (Who am I kidding? I'm complete trash for Galahad.)
> 
> Inspired by Mod Silver at Tumblr's headcannons for Galahad.

You had no idea that prana depletion had such a painstakingly slow recovery process. As if being unconscious for an entire day and being bedridden for two more days was not enough, Dr. Roman told you to stay put until you fully recover. Then again, you had given everything you had, without reserve, to push Solomon and his Demon Pillar at London back.

  
Life without the daily routine of farming embers and hunting for gems was relaxing, but boring. Your older twin, Gudao, promised he would farm your share of the materials and you argued that he was not any better than you; using two Command Seals to release Jeanne's La Pucelle. Dr. Roman mentioned that he had not critically depleted his prana despite La Pucelle's innate nature to indiscriminately use it. So you were stuck wandering Chaldea, striking conversations with the various staff there, or with your and Gudao's Servants. Unfortunately, as much as that provided a form of entertainment, you easily bored of that. Ironically, your boredom brought you to the greenhouse.

Most of Chaldea's staff committed themselves to fostering at least one plant. Saving humanity was no small feat and horticulture proved to be a worthwhile stress-reliever. Flowers were few since the greenhouse could only do so much to emulate a normal climate, but there were some roses in the pots. The greenhouse's crowning glory was undoubtedly the cherry blossom tree at the back. While its flowers rarely, if it ever, bloomed, it was the only tree Chaldea managed to successfully keep. It stood proudly and you wondered if you were the only one who thought that the tree was somewhat symbolic of Chaldea's struggle to restore human order.

  
Dull aches and pains were still prevalent in your body, but you felt significantly stronger as the days went by. The wound on your back, a graze if anything, but Gudao would be damned if he showed anything less than excessive worrying, was healing nicely and hampered none of your movements. You had to meet up with Mash and Dr. Roman later in the afternoon so to check your prana and your physical health respectively, though it was highly unlikely that they will allow you to Rayshift to farm embers with anyone else other than Galahad.

  
As you sat on the base of the tree, you realized that it had been three days since you saw Galahad. He had not been there when you woke up and was also absent when you saw Gudao and Jeanne off before they Rayshifted. Dr. Roman, Da Vinci or Mash did not mention him either. He was usually not far from sight, though you did notice that lately, he would purposefully avoid you when not in combat. If you were honest, you missed how he gave you brutally verbalized critcisms about the timing of your orders and your flexibility in combat. You had expected him to keep watch on every second of your recovery to drag you out to farm embers the moment you were better, but he was nowhere to be found.

  
The greenhouse door opened, but you ignored it. Someone from the staff might have arrived to take care of their assigned plant. You closed your eyes and breathed in the scent of earth and the hard bark behind you. When the footsteps came closer and the scent of metal and death reached your nose, you already knew who it was.

  
"Master," he said in lieu of a greeting.

  
"Galahad." You opened your eyes. He had forgone his armor and was wearing a pair of pants and a crisp dress shirt with sleeves rolled to his elbows. "You're a bit late on your verbal lashing," you mentioned with a laugh.

  
He extended a hand towards you and you took it. It was hardly the first time you held hands, but you always felt the strength of his grip and admired him for it. Galahad was like the cherry blossom tree behind you: firm, strong and dependable. This time though, you felt him shaking. Even as he pulled you to your feet, you felt the tremors underneath his calloused palm. His hand lingered in yours and he kept his eyes on the ground separating the two of you. That small distance felt as miniscule as the distance between the sky and the earth. Most of the time, you had a good read on what was going on in his mind, but since he started avoiding you, it had become harder. It certainly did not diminish your effectivity as a pair in battle, but it was still there, an unopened box at the back of your mind, slowly and steadily growing in size.

  
You were about to ask him what was wrong, but he gave you no time to ask as he pulled you to his chest and tightly wrapped his arms around you. The smell of metal and death clung to him along with the secnt of mint that his soap had. His arms were shaking along your back and your sides and he made up for it, by wrapping them tighter around you. His hair tickled your cheek and neck as he nuzzled your shoulder. As if that had not been enough, you heard his breath take on a labored pace.

  
Inhaling a lungful of his scent, you wrapped your arms around him as well. It was a surprise to see him act like this, but you were not about to deny that it was a pleasant surprise. You did not realize just how much you missed him until now.

  
"I ask of you, Master." He said firmly, uncharacteristic of the tremors in his arms. "Please... Do not put yourself in between me and danger again. I implore you, Master."

  
You had expected him to berate you for jumping to push him out of the way of Solomon's final attacks. The King of Magic had been flailing aimlessly and one of his appendages, came directly to Galahad, who had used up the accumulation of your Command Seal, his own and your prana to raise the defenses of Lord Camelot one more time. The appendage curved at the last second, grazing your back, not enough to injure you deeply, but enough to make you bleed. By the time Solomon left, your wound had stopped bleeding, though it was only one of the many aches and pains you had sustained at the time, so naturally, you thought nothing of it. Apparently he, like Gudao, had taken your injury far too seriously than you would have liked.

  
"I'm fine, Galahad. It was just a scratch," you assured him.

  
"Even so," he insisted. "I am your shield. I am here to protect you. I..." his voice broke; you could only listen as your Shielder broke into pieces. If you were being honest, it felt like he was clinging to _you_ for stability. "I would not find it in myself to continue fighting if you..." he took a shuddering breath, unwilling to finish his statement. "You are my Master and I..."

  
You gently ran your hands through his hair and you froze at his next words:

  
"I have selfishly allowed myself to gaze upon you with tender affection."

  
Ecstasy came first. At the mention of him having strong feelings for you, your heart soared and filled your mind with pleasant numbness. There was only him and you; the world was not desolate outside the greenhouse, humanity did not need to be saved, Solomon and his schemes did not exist; you were not a Master and he was not a Servant.

  
Then you realized; he was afraid. Galahad, the Knight who was said to lead the next generation of the Round Table, was frightened. Perhaps it was because he saw what happened to Sir Lancelot when he and Queen Guinevere fell in love or what sorrow Sir Tristan had to endure for his Isolde. There was nothing impure or lacking in him; he was strong and stalwart and maybe, to an extent, he had hardened his heart to keep it that way. Maybe Galahad did not even consider falling in love, seeing how it had brought hurt and ruin and death.

  
Now that he was experiencing it first hand, he was, rightfully, terrified.

  
"You won't hurt me, Galahad." You had thought on what to say to him, but you knew your words would just fail to reach him. After all, he had lived and died donning his conviction, only to have it undone by a sad excuse of a magus like yourself.

  
"I have no intention to. I do not wish to."

  
"Hey," you pulled away from him and he loosened his hold on you so you could stare at his face. As he refused to meet your eyes, your hands found purchase on either side of his cheeks and you lifted his head.

  
Galahad's eyes were the most wonderful shade of gray you had ever seen, stormy and turbulent. He was a force to be reckoned with, you thought absently and that you were incredibly fortunate to have him protecting you.

  
"I'm only still here because of you, Galahad."

  
His eyes widened then they watered and then he was burying his face into your neck again. You deiced that you would be the one to remove all his doubts, to chase away all his fears and make sure that he will not withhold himself from loving you. You had no doubt that it would be an arduous process, but you loved him as well. That was enough reason for you to walk beside him as much as time permitted.

**Author's Note:**

> Mod Silver's Galahad headcannons can be found here, http://fate-grandorder-imagines.tumblr.com/tagged/Galahad.
> 
> I might be posting this on my Tumblr as well, or not. I haven't decided yet.
> 
> Please leave a comment as feedback. It really makes my day. :)


End file.
